The King of Neptune High
by Catheryne
Summary: AU about how LoVe can happen preVeronica Mars. Changed things since one of LL's breakups and before VD hooked up.
1. Chapter 1

The King of Neptune High

Characters: LoVe, Ensemble

Summary: A high school romance story involving Veronica, Logan, Lilly and Duncan. Alternative to the LoVe story had events leading up to Lilly's death not happened. Just say this is completely AU.

Rating: PG13-R

AN: Lilly is not dead. Thus, pink Veronica hasn't metamorphosed into Keith's action-figure daughter yet.

I have to step a little bit outside the mystery genre. It takes a lot of planning and makes my nose bleed. At times, I just want to exercise my fingers and have fun exhausting the words in my brain. Thus, I have decided to have a finger exercise story going that I can update when I need to take a few days plotting the next part of the mystery fic.

So please don't expect grand revelations or angsty past mistakes. This is me writing without the plot outline that rules most of my other stories. Simply put, just like the original title of this story – This is Just a Love Story.

Part 1

One thing amazing about high schools is, no matter how rebellious young adults got when it came to authority, they would not hesitate to create their own monarchy.

Neptune High was different from many schools in America. The high school boasted a class of young men and women who would, in about ten years, be gracing Fortune magazine. Yet like many schools, Neptune High had a tier system that had a figurehead for each division.

On the far side of the tracks were the intriguing but scandalous PCH bikers, whose leader was Eli Navarro, better known as Weevil. All the girls at Neptune knew they were untouchable, and that made them want to touch even more. The guys regarded them as lowlives, and as such feared them. The bikers had nothing much to lose after all.

Pomp and glitter, breeding arrogance and allure, were Neptune's white ass rich boys. They surfed; they shopped; they had food delivered. They were on top of the food chain and attended classes in buildings named after their grandfathers, slept overnight in hotels their parents owned, and drove cars from manufacturers they had personal stock in.

When the parking area of Neptune filled with luxury cars and SUVs, and in strolled the rich kids, one young man was conspicuous at the very front. When he was running behind, the crowd parted to make way for him. No one walked in front of Logan Echolls.

He was, for all intents and purposes, the King of Neptune High.

It was a distinction not easily achieved. Logan was a prince at birth, of course. His parents were critically-acclaimed, award-winning, box office-leading A-list actors. He had the best designer outfits, highlighted hair and devil-may-care attitude. But that can only get a guy so far. Had those been the only requirements, Logan may trail behind Connor Larkin, who was an actor in his own right.

Logan took care of his place. He had carefully crafted practical jokes and he reveled in pissing off the administration. He irritated the hell out of the biker gang and he flirted enough to make ladies swoon, yet at the same time flirted just enough to break their hearts.

It may be exaggeration, but it seemed that Neptune High worshipped Logan Echolls. He was gorgeous, wealthy, playful and witty.

In the same school, the prince of Neptune attended. No, he did not rule the high school. His parents held in their hands all working families of the town and thus, Duncan Kane automatically commanded respect. And respect came. It came in the form of hushed whispers about secrets that lurked in the Kane mansion. He held the same intrigue that titillating crimes had. His name buzzed enough that he was proclaimed president of the student council. He was, after all, his parents' son. Neither did it hurt that he had known the adored and gossiped about Logan Echolls since they were children.

And so the PCH bikers crowded around one table in the quad. At the other end, the rich kids lounged in several large tables, surrounding their Chinese and Italian food delivery.

At the center of the quad, halfway between here and there, sat a girl who hid behind her long golden hair. She tentatively sipped her tetra pack juice.

"Hey Veronica Mars!"

She looked up in surprise. Homecoming queen and the prodigal princess of Neptune, Lilly Kane, in all her glory, stood beaming at her. "Hi Lilly." Veronica glanced around her, checking if people were staring.

"Yes, they are," Lilly said proudly. "Everyone's looking. Who's not gonna look when the most gorgeous ladies in the planet are here?" She took a seat in front of Veronica and placed her lunch tray on the table. "What's the matter, Veronica? You're looking pasty. I have just the thing!" Lilly opened her handbag and scrounged inside. "It's a wonderful foundation I got shipped from Europe."

"Lilly—" Veronica said timidly. Her nerves made her fidget, and she got a scrunchie to tie her hair up in a ponytail. "Why are you over here? Didn't you know—I'm out."

Lilly's eyes went up to Veronica's face. And then she burst into laughter. "That is so butch, Veronica Mars! So not you. It's kind of lesbian, which is so exciting." Veronica blushed. "But I know what you mean. My ex can't touch you. Don't worry."

"Of course he can," Veronica said wryly. She watched as Lilly laid out the food she got from the cafeteria. She truly loved Lilly. Lilly had everything Veronica could only dreamed of yet out of sheer weirdness on Lilly's part, she hung out with Veronica and made sure Veronica wouldn't feel down or out of place.

Lilly dumped some of the food in front of Veronica. "Nutrition for you, my sweet," Lilly pronounced. "The bony look isn't as hot as my sheer voluptuousness."

"Lilly," Veronica reminded her best friend, "Logan's parents are going to divorce because my dad stumbled upon Mr. Echolls having an affair close to one of the crime scenes he was investigating."

Lilly rolled her eyes. "Veronica, are you going to insist on this drama? Seriously, life has to be more fun!"

"Sorry." She sighed. "I just wish I can make everyone stop whispering about me. They're been talking about me behind my back since the news broke out last Friday."

"And Logan hasn't talked to you since then, right? Oh Veronica, he's probably been busy. You know, life!" Lilly shrugged and bit into her apple. Veronica nodded. Seeing something from over Veronica's shoulder, Lilly brightened. "Oh the irritating angel is here for you again!"

Veronica turned around and saw Lily's brother Duncan approaching them with a small pizza box and a paper bag.

"I come bearing gifts!" Duncan greeted.

Lilly clapped as Duncan opened the pizza box in front of them. Duncan drew out a Styrofoam package and opened it, then handed it to Veronica. "Fried dumplings."

"Your favorite!" Lilly exclaimed.

Veronica accepted the food, because she really enjoyed dumplings. Duncan sat beside her. She saw Lilly looking at the two of them fondly, and Veronica uncomfortably shifted away.

"I was a little disappointed that you didn't join me at our table, Veronica," Duncan said shyly. "I wanted to ask you something." He glanced at Lilly, and jerked his head to the side.

Lilly took the hint. She got a tissue and grabbed a slice of pizza. "I'm going to ask Shelley about that blouse. That would make you look so hot, Veronica. We gotta know where she bought it." When Veronica was about to stand up to come with her, Lilly waved her back down. "Stay here. Donut needs to talk."

Veronica watched Lilly's retreating form longingly. Then she turned back to Duncan. "You were saying?"

"That maybe you'll want to go to the Valentine's Day dance with me," Duncan told her.

Veronica bit her lower lip. "Ummm…" She glanced at the school, then back at Duncan. "I don't know, Duncan."

"Need to think about it?" Veronica winced. "It's okay. Think about it. You know Lilly would love it if you came."

Duncan stood up and squeezed Veronica's shoulder. Veronica watched as Duncan went back to the 09er table. Lilly asked Duncan something and he shrugged. Then Lilly jogged back to Veronica's table. "I don't blame you," Lilly said flippantly. "My brother's a little bit vanilla. Between the two of you, it'll be a total snoozefest. However, he really does like you, Veronica Mars. I don't think you can do better in this school. Think about it."

"I will, Lilly. Thanks."

Lilly placed her elbows on the table and leaned forward. "Now about that blouse. We can pick up a purple one. It would totally look amazing on you."

"Lilly, you know I don't have enough money to afford something Shelley Pomeroy is wearing."

"It's my treat," Lilly told her. "It's so worth it to see how people would notice that the same blouse on you can look ten times more amazing than it does on Shelley."

"Lilly!" Veronica protested. "You shouldn't be wasting your shopping money on me. And," Veronica added as an afterthought, "Shelley's supposed to be our friend."

Lilly grimaced. "Number one, I can do anything with my shopping money and this is what I want to do. Number two, and remember this, Veronica Mars, all these other girls are people we go to school with. You and I, we're friends. All of the others are just that—others." Lilly reached out for Veronica's hand and squeezed. "Best friends."

Veronica smiled. "Forever."

"So let's go shopping!" Lilly squealed. "Mushy moment over."

"Lilly, I have to go to work."

"Argh, Veronica!"

"We'll go in the weekend, Lilly. I promise! I'm just saving up for my dad's birthday gift."

Lilly sighed. "I'll drive you to work."

"You're the best!"

"I know," Lilly said offhandedly, as if it were the most obvious thing in the world.

Lilly blew kisses at Veronica as Veronica waved her away in front of the cake shop. When Lille was gone, Veronica proceeded to the backroom where she placed her things in her locker.

In her underwear, Veronica grabbed the locker handle as she slid into her uniform. She reached for the zipper at the back. Hands closer over hers and the dress was zipped shut. Veronica sighed in relief and smiled.

"How were you ever going to zip that without me?" the voice behind her murmured.

The young man behind her dipped his head to kiss the crook of her neck. "Oh… Oh…" she whispered. "That feels wonderful, Logan." Veronica turned around. Logan grinned down at her and kissed her on the lips. "I was going to ask the other waiter Jack," she answered. "He's always happy to oblige."

Logan growled and grabbed her waist. "You wouldn't."

Veronica shook her head. Then she looped her arms around his neck. "I thought you were never going to talk to me again."

"I'm sorry, Ronnie," Logan mumbled. He bent down to kiss around the collar of her uniform. "Everything's just been a mess at home. I wanted to come to you so bad."

"It's okay. At least I know now you're not mad at me."

He took her hand and led her to one of the chairs. "I heard about how they're been treating you at school."

"It was expected," she said. "My dad screwed up your life, Logan. I'm just shocked you're still talking to me."

"My dad screwed up our lives, Veronica. Your dad just stumbled across the Echolls' piece of hell."

Veronica reached out and cupped his cheek. Logan turned his head to place a kiss on her palm. "I missed you."

He nodded. "I missed you too. I'm gonna make up for the lost days though."

"About that," Veronica started. "I'm not too sure about what you wanted, Logan."

"Veronica, Lilly's not in love with me," he assured her. "And I sure as hell for more in the weeks since we hooked up than I ever did while I was with Lilly. You only wanted to keep it a secret so Lilly won't be hurt, right?"

"Logan, Lilly will be hurt. I think she wants me to be with her brother. I love Lilly."

Logan took a few steps back. "You're kidding me, right? You love Lilly so much than you're willing to be with Duncan so she won't feel bad?" Logan repeated in disbelief. "That's sick!"

"No, Logan!" Veronica cried. "I'm saying let's keep this quiet until I'm sure finding out about us isn't going to disappoint my best friend! You understand the concept, don't you? Duncan's yours. Don't you think he'll be hurt when he finds out?"

"He'll survive," Logan spat.

Veronica stepped closer to Logan, and reached for his arm, but he flinched away. Veronica's face fell. She sniffled. "You have to go, Logan. I have to clock in," she whispered. Veronica turned to the door. When she pulled it open, she felt his arms come around her from behind. He embraced her tightly and he buried his face in her hair. "Logan, my boss will deduct every minute I'm late from my pay," she said softly.

"I'll give you a check. Just stay with me."

At that, Veronica gasped and whirled around. Logan frowned. Her eyes narrowed at him. "What the hell do you think of us, Logan!"

"What did I do now?" he roared.

Veronica pushed him away. "Get a clue!" She stalked to the front to surrender her time card.

During the entire four hours of her shift, Logan stubbornly occupied one of the tables, glowering at her and her customers. When she finally had her time card signed by the owner, and she changed into her regular clothes, Veronica grabbed her bag and made her way out through the back door. The shift had been busy and she limped. She was walking down the street when someone grabbed her bag and took her by the elbow.

Veronica was too exhausted to argue. Logan led her to his SUV and opened the door for her. She looked around to check if there was anyone loitering around who knew her.

Logan used the control in the driver side to roll up the heavily tinted windows. "No one will be able to see from outside," he said gently. "And I'll drive in the sidestreets so no one sees me in your neighborhood." He reached for her knee and squeezed.

Veronica quickly jumped from her seat and into his arms. "Thanks," she whispered into his ear. "And sorry for being a bitch."

Logan smirked. "A bitch? You? You're an angel, Veronica Mars."

tbc


	2. Chapter 2

Part 2

"Hey what's up, man?"

Logan sighed and turned around to see Dick Casablancas strolling towards him with his arms raised. "Dick."

"You stood us up, Logan," Dick accused. Behind him walked his brother Beaver and their friend Cole. "I thought we were going to catch some waves."

Logan shrugged. "I got stuff to do."

"Whatever, man," Dick grumbled and headed towards his last class. Cassidy reached out and patted Logan's arm as he passed. Cole, on the other hand, merely grinned at Logan.

Logan waited until the three vanished as they turned at the corridor. Satisfied that they would not be able to watch him, he strolled happily to the back of the school where he and Veronica were supposed to meet. He opened the door and saw Lilly Kane hiking up her pants, trying to look at her ankle. She whirled around at the sound.

"Oh hello, Logan," she murmured, batting her eyelashes.

"Should I even ask?"

Lilly straightened and walked up to him, laying her hand on his chest. "You know you want to," she taunted.

"Fine," Logan sighed. "What were doing just there?"

Her lips curved into that intriguing Lilly smirk. "I was checking out my tattoo."

"Nice," he said.

"Oh yeah," was her confident answer. "You would've loved it. I would've let you kiss it better coz it's still sore."

"But I can't because we're broken up, right?" Logan prodded.

"Maybe if you're a good boy and ask me to the Valentine's Day dance, I'd let you have one last kiss."

Logan grinned slightly. "I'll pass."

Lilly pouted dramatically. "I'm offended, Logan." She placed the tip of her finger between her teeth. Then, she ran the moist tip along the line of his lower lip. "Don't tell me you're not hung up on me anymore. That's so not you."

She had a point, certainly. Logan had always been the one panting after her every time they broke up. This time though, Logan had no residual longing for the pretty girl in front of him. He was delighted with her, amused, as any person, man or woman, would be of Lilly Kane. She was that kind of spirit. His pining was reserved for a completely different person now, speaking of whom still had not arrived.

"And why aren't you showing off your tattoo to your best friend?" Logan inquired. "Isn't your perpetual role to demonize her? By now, you should be harping on her to get a matching one."

"Logan Echolls!" she gasped in mock surprise, smacking him on the upper arm. "Are you insinuating that I'm a bad influence on Veronica Mars?"

"You said it, Lilly, not me. Where is Veronica anyway?"

Lilly rolled her big, inviting eyes and sighed the world-weary sigh of philosophers, poets and intellectuals. "I had to leave her in the caring attention of my brother. Last I saw, Duncan was waiting outside our classroom with a huge bouquet of white roses."

Logan frowned. Duncan was truly getting on his nerves. "So I gather the sheriff's daughter jumped up and down?" he fished.

"She seemed a little uncomfortable," Lilly answered. "But you know, Veronica. She'll come around. I won't stop telling her how much he adores her. I so want her to be my sister. I am not going to stand around while Duncan mopes around with a broken heart and eats all the ice cream in the fridge."

"You actually see Veronica and Duncan together?"

"Forever," Lilly said with conviction. A stray thought passed through her mind and she winced. "Better her than some evil sister-in-law I'd have to share a bathroom with."

Logan watched Lilly's face as she went on and on about how horrendous it would be to share the spotlight with someone she didn't like. At least she could live with Veronica Mars, according to her. She could not wait to do all the cool old people stuff with Veronica, like shop for wedding dresses and buy out toy stores, plan baby showers and anniversaries. He felt his chest rumble, and Logan wondered if that was hunger or his heart. "You sound like you should marry her."

She glared at Logan. "Oh grow up, Logan!"

"Well I don't have time for this. Where's Duncan? I need to talk to him. He owes me something."

Lilly waved her hand away. "He's probably still with Veronica."

Logan excused himself and went back to the school, heading in the way of Veronica's last class. On the way he saw Veronica running. When she spotted him, she slowed down, gasping for breath. "Logan, I'm so sorry!"

He took her hand and looked around them, then pulled her towards an open classroom, then closed the door behind them. "I was just looking for you."

Veronica nodded, pushing her long hair back, tucking it behind her ear. "I know I'm late. I'm really really sorry, Logan."

His eyes fell to the bouquet of flowers sticking out of her bag. "That's fine. I was just on my way to tell you I couldn't keep our appointment. Dick invited me to something."

Her jaw fell. "You were going to stand me up for Dick?"

Logan shrugged coolly. He was not Logan Echolls, King of Neptune High, if he was going to show Veronica Mars that she could get to him so easily. "You know how it is with guys."

"Yeah, I do," she said sadly. She had planned to watch a movie with Logan at her house, so that her father would get used to seeing him less as Lynn and Aaron's uncontrollable son and more as the boy Veronica keeps bringing home. "Some other time then."

"Sure. I'll bring my day planner," he responded, allowing an edge of sarcasm to enter his voice. "And Veronica, don't forget to put those in water." Logan pointed to the flowers. "Lilly can bring you home, right?"

"Yeah," she answered quickly. "I was going to skip cheerleading practice so we can hang out but I guess I'll just hang around and check out the new choreography, which I am absolutely never going to get anyway."

That brought a smile to his face. Just because he was upset that didn't mean that he could turn off his imagination. "Who cares about the right moves? I'd be happy just to see you strutting around in that short skirt."

She blushed. "I'll see you then." Veronica tiptoes and kissed him on the cheek.

Logan waved goodbye, then waited ten seconds after she had left the room before exiting, just in case someone had seen her leave. "How I gotta find Dick," he muttered.

Veronica sat on the bench with Lilly as they watched the head cheerleaders demonstrate the acrobatic stunt that they were going to perform during the next game. She marveled at the way that the two veteran members of the squad were tossed up into the air. Four male cheerleaders caught them by the waist right before they hit the ground.

Veronica shot up to her feet and started applauding. She turned to Lilly and exclaimed, "They were so good, Lil! I wish I could do that."

"Well I think they're starting us off easy," Lilly told her. Veronica noticed how Lilly turned around and looked at the bleachers, as if waiting for someone.

Michelle, the senior student who was captain of the squad, stepped up to the front and addressed them. "All right, junior recruits! It's time for you to show us what you can contribute to the team. I want a pyramid made up of only the new girls. Who's going to be on top?"

At those words, Lilly brightened. She raised her hand. "Of course I am," she presented.

The captain of the squad smiled and nodded. She had not expected anyone else. In fact, she wanted no one else. What better way was there to pump up the crowd than to place their princess right on top of the pyramid?

"At the count of fifteen, I want the pyramid built. You people arrange yourselves." Michelle yelled, "One. Two. Three. Four."

Lilly stood at the sidelines with Veronica as the girls scrambled to fill the spots. Veronica stepped forward, but Lilly took her by her arm. "You have to pick one of the highest spots, Veronica." "Five. Six. Seven. Eight." Veronica's heart sank as one by one the spots were all occupied except for the top. "Nine. Ten. Eleven."

Lilly turned to Veronica and raised her shoulders. "Ooops. Sorry." She then proceeded to the pyramid and started climbing. "Twelve. Thirteen." Lilly was crouched at the top. "Stand up and smile, Lilly Kane!"

Uneasily, but her smile not slipping, Lilly raised herself up on one leg then steadied herself on her own two feet. "Fourteen!" She raised her arms and smiled brightly at all sides. "Fifteen! Good job, ladies!"

The girls slowly dismounted. Lilly laughed out loud, exhilarated. "Veronica, that was the best!"

Veronica smiled, a little jealous that she did not get to participate. "It looked great."

The two heard a chirping sound. Lilly glanced at Michelle who was speaking with one of the new recruits. "Veronica, I gotta go. Just for a few minutes. Cover for me." Before Veronica could respond, Lilly was off, slipping away then jogging towards the bleachers.

"All right, people. I want to see that beauty again. This time, I want it in twelve."

Veronica whirled around and searched for Lilly.

"One. Two. Three. Four. Five." The stack built up as Veronica watched in horror. "Six. Seven. Eight." Michelle frowned and looked towards where Lilly had been. "Veronica Mars, where's Lilly Kane?"

"Michelle, she went to the washroom," Veronica called back.

"Then move your ass up there, Mars. You're the only one free." Veronica gazed up wide-eyed at the pyramid. "Nine. Ten. Two seconds, Mars!"

Veronica clambered up frantically, hearing the groans and the squeals of the other cheerleaders. "Eleven. Show me your teeth!" Muttering a prayer and cursing at Lilly, Veronica stood up with her knees knocking together, giving Michelle a tense and lopsided grin as she raised her arms waist-high in order to balance herself. "Twelve!"

Just then, Veronica's uncomfortable smile fell when she felt one side of the pyramid collapse. She let out a piercing squeal as she tumbled off the top and right smack on the grass. Veronica felt the blinding pain on her elbow.

"Oh my God, Veronica!" she heard Lilly scream.

A dazed Veronica turned her head to see her best friend running towards them from the bleachers, still fixing the top of her cheerleading outfit.

"Duncan, Duncan, Veronica's hurt!" Veronica heard Lilly yell.

Veronica turned her head to the other side of the field and saw Duncan running towards her in his soccer uniform.

"We have to take her to the clinic," Michelle's voice was heard.

Veronica felt herself hoisted up into moist arms. She let out a strangled moan of pain as her hurt arm was crushed against Duncan's chest. She gritted her teeth when he started running towards the school building, jarring her arm with every step. Instead of keeping her eyes open and watchful while Duncan sprinted, Veronica squeezed her eyes shut and she buried her face into Duncan's sweaty shirt.

She could tell they had arrived at the main building and they were making their way to the clinic. The level of noise had intensified.

"Hey what the hell happened?" one familiar male voice demanded.

Veronica wanted to turn her face to him so she could assure him she was fine, and he should not worry. By then though, the pain was killing her. She was sure that the rescue process had made her injury worse. She did not want Logan to see how her face was streaked with tears then. With her other hand, she tightened her hold on Duncan's arm.

As Duncan made his way inside the clinic, Veronica heard her best friend recount the tale in her own words.

"Oh Logan, thank God. She took my place in the pyramid. Imagine if it happened and it was me," came Lilly's fading voice.

"Kids, I need you to stay outside as I look Veronica over," the nurse said in her gentle voice.

Duncan deposited her into the bed and kissed her forehead. "You'll be fine."

"Hey I want to see her," Logan's voice rose. "She's my friend too. Duncan saw her."

"Mr Echolls," the nurse told him gently, "I think Mr Kane deserved that exemption. He saved her after all. Now everyone, shoo. I have a patient."

Right before the door closed, Veronica heard Logan grumble, "Saving her means catching her."

A soft and gentle shaking woke him. Logan looked up at the person standing in front of him. He had fallen asleep outside the clinic, sitting on the floor and leaning against the wall. He had been waiting about half an hour when Lilly reminded Duncan that Celeste was going to be waiting for them. When they left, Logan told them he'd stay because he was still hanging out with Dick, Cole and Beaver. Only thing was, he stayed outside right on the floor.

"Logan," the nurse said, "you're going to have a killer backache if you don't stand up now."

He groaned and stretched. "I got a killer backache now." Remembering why he was still in school when he normally left before the last bell, he asked, "How is she?"

"She's going to have to go to the hospital for a cast. I put a temporary one there for the time being."

Logan stood up and brushed his pants to smoothen it. "Can I take her?"

"I've called an ambulance," the nurse said. "She's still under the school's responsibility because the accident happened on campus."

"Oh. Okay. Can I come with her?"

The nurse smiled, knowing that Logan's car was in the parking lot and he would have to find a way to make it back to the school to pick it up. "Tell you want," the nurse presented. "Since I have to follow in my car anyway, you can ride along in the ambulance and then I'll drive you back here for your car."

Logan's grin was blinding for one moment, then it faded. Gruffly, he said, "Yeah. Not that I care. But my mom would kill me if she knew I didn't offer. She's friends with the sheriff."

The nurse nodded and opened the door to the clinic. "I know. The sheriff has a lot of friends, doesn't he?"

Logan glared suspiciously because he thought the nurse was patronizing her. He followed her into the clinic. His hard stare softened at the sight of Veronica sitting on the bed with her arm in her makeshift cast. He waited until the nurse was out of earshot. Then he stood beside Veronica and with his eyebrows furrowed, he asked her, "Are you okay?"

"I'm fabulous," she told him with a dreamy smile.

"I'm sorry," he admitted. "I was on a stupid strike."

Veronica frowned. "You were? Strike against what?"

"Against Duncan's stupid flowers. I already told Dick I wasn't coming, but I got jealous."

Veronica smirked. "You, jealous? Logan Echolls is too good to be jealous, right? You're the king!"

He shook his head. Logan glanced back at the nurse, whose back was turned to them. He leaned his forehead against hers. "Can't be too good for you." He cupped her face and kissed her on the lips, a brief and chaste kiss.

Veronica breathed deeply, the kiss lingering on her lips. "Come on. I'll let you be the first one to sign my cast, your highness."

Logan nodded. "You are the only person with a broken arm I've met who's still so cheerful and positive."

The nurse finally turned around and helped Veronica off the bed. "That's because she's hyped on painkillers."

Veronica giggled.

tbc


	3. Chapter 3

Part 3

Veronica gave him a toothy grin from the emergency room where her arm was put in a cast to the nurse's car. Logan had awkwardly tried to straighten her beside him in the backseat, because the nurse could still see them and Veronica had been adamant about the secrecy. However, when the painkillers finally completely kicked in and he found Veronica slumped against his body and drooling on his jacket, Logan found himself grinning and wincing at the same time.

A box of tissue paper landed beside him. He picked it up and took one, then gingerly tried to wipe some of the saliva that inched its way out of Veronica's mouth. The nurse was not stupid. He knew he signed a confession when he did not throw Veronica off of him at the sight of her bodily fluid darkening his designer clothes.

He looked up at the rearview mirror where he met the nurse's eyes. "Thanks," Logan mumbled.

"Sure," she said. "I know your mom's friends with her dad."

And Logan was pretty sure that she patronized him then. As a sign of gratefulness, he decided to refer to the nurse by her name and not by her occupation. Lynn Echollas often lectured him that that was how people felt valued. "Ms Lee, you won't tell anyone right?"

"Tell anyone what?" she asked with a glint in her eye.

Logan smirked and caught Veronica by her shoulders as the turn of the road caused her to fall off his shoulder and almost onto his lap. "How long is she gonna be knocked out for?"

"Give or take four hours," Ms Lee offered. "Logan, can you give me the directions to Veronica's place? We have to drop her off first."

Logan maneuvered Veronica's body so that she could lie halfway in the backseat and just use his lap as a pillow. "Just drive us to school. I'll take her back home in my car."

"Alright," Ms Lee agreed. "But I'm going to follow you two back to her house, okay? Seeing her home is still part of the school's responsibility."

The school nurse then helped Logan get Veronica into his car and followed his car to her place. When Ms Lee had seen Logan run up to Veronica's door and open it, then rush back to the car and tenderly heft the girl into his arms before walking slowly into the house and kicking the door behind him, the nurse drove away.

Meanwhile Logan made his way inside the Mars' place and recalled the times when he picked Lilly up from the house. He created a mental layout of the living room, the kitchen and the bedrooms. Logan walked over to Veronica's bedroom and placed her on the bed.

"How much liquid have you had today?" he muttered. Logan reached for another piece of tissue paper from the side table and wiped at her cheek.

He sat on the edge of the bed and reached for the cast, then ran his fingers down the hard path until he reached her peeking fingers. They were warm and a little bloated. He wondered what kind of patient she was going to be when the painkillers had worn off. She had been an angelic patient all the time in the clinic and in the hospital. He should have known it was the drugs, of course.

Logan's gaze wandered around Veronica's room. He had not had the chance to assess it yet. He was aware of Veronica's efforts to get him to spend more time in the place but since he started to feel certain things for Veronica, Logan had been uncomfortable around Keith Mars. He could not help but feel that Keith would be weighing him, checking to see what he's made of, testing his material and eventually finding him lacking.

It was definitely a girl's room. The walls had half a dozen posters of different landscapes. The dresser had a few brushes, perfume bottles and brushes scattered on it. Held up on the mirror by cartoon magnets were photographs of herself and Lilly. There were a few pictures of her parents and even of Logan and Duncan.

The phone started ringing. Logan stood up and walked over. He was about to answer when he realized that that would be a huge mistake. The machine picked up. He listened as Keith Mars' voice filled the room. "Veronica? I thought you'd be home by now. Anyway, honey, I'm sorry I can't make it home tonight. We're following a case lead out of town. I might be home late tomorrow night. You be good to your mom, ok?"

Logan turned around and walked in to Veronica's bedroom. He leaned over and pushed her hair away from her face, then placed a kiss on her forehead. "I'm going home. I'll call you later."

He was about to leave when he heard the phone ring again. He waited around until he heard Lianne's voice. "Veronica, sweetheart, it's mom." Logan frowned. He had lived with Lynn Echolls enough to recognize that that stiff cheer in Lianne's voice was affected by alcohol. "Your dad called and told me he's not coming home. I'm supposed to be there by seven to make dinner but there's an emergency here in Louise's place and I can't make it home. Order some takeout and I'll give you money tomorrow, alright? Goodnight, sweetie!"

Logan sighed. He walked over to the refrigerator and hunted around for any type of food he could prepare. He then picked up the phone and ordered enough pasta for two people. He sat on the couch and turned on the television, then surfed some channels.

About an hour and two sitcoms later, the phone started ringing again. Logan glanced at the clock. "Who knew Veronica Mars got so many messages?" He should really teach her some deep inspirational voicemail messages.

"Veroooonicaaaa!"

Logan sat up and narrowed his eyes at the answering machine, as if Lilly Kane could see him.

"Veronica, you haven't answered my two previous messages." Logan could almost picture the pout that accompanied that statement. "I've been waiting and waiting for you to call me back. You still aren't home? I'm so worried about you and so is Donut," Lilly grumbled. "Anyway, when you are finally home you have to spill about gorgeous male nurses or any young doctors that you should so have flashed in the hospital."

Logan rolled his eyes, then turned the volume of the television up.

"Alright then, Veronica. Call me!"

The doorbell rang. Logan peered through the peephole and saw the food. He pulled open the door and drew his wallet out of his pocket.

"Logan Echolls?"

Logan froze. He was looking straight into the eyes of one of the high school seniors, the one running for valedictorian. "Uhhh… I thought you were working for your dad's pizza place?"

The other young man smirked at him. "It's Hamilton Cho," he offered. "And I do. I also work part time at Luigi's."

"Wow," Logan replied awkwardly and handed him the money to more than cover for the food.

Hamilton looked down at the receipt. "Logan Echolls ordering for the Mars address." He counted the money and then handed Logan back a hundred dollars. "I think you miscalculated." Logan met his gaze but did not move to take the money. "You really don't need to, man," Hamilton said. "I don't care enough to spread rumors. I've got too much on my plate."

Logan took the food and released a deep breath. He closed the door and then placed the food on the table. His stomach rumbled. Logan went into Veronica's bedroom and saw her still sleeping soundly. Logan took his phone from his pocket and dialed his mother's number.

"Hey mom. I might not come home tonight. I'm spending the night at a sick friend's. Huh? Well no one's gonna stay with her."

Logan set his jaw when his mother asked who it was. There was a long pause. His mother threatened to have the police start looking for his car if he did not tell her. The sheriff would kill him if he heard over his radio that Logan Echolls had finally been found right inside the sheriff's own house.

"It's Veronica, mom. Her parents aren't here and she's sick."

He expected her to tell him to go home because it was Keith who busted his father having an affair anyway. Logan was surprised when Lynn agreed that he should hang around with Veronica.

He took a pillow from Veronica's bed and placed it on one end of the couch, then stretched himself in it. His feet propped on the couch armrest. It was not the most comfortable position. Still, he was within eyesight of Veronica's bedroom. He fell asleep.

A few hours later, it was Veronica's voice that woke him. He opened his eyes to see Veronica leaning over him, her eyes blotchy. He immediately looked down at the cast.

"Hey how are you feeling?"

"Awful!" she responded honestly. "Do you know where the pain meds are?"

He smiled. "You put it in your bag."

Veronica turned around to get it, but he caught her uninjured arm. "First, you eat. You can't take that on an empty stomach," Logan warned her.

She groaned. "Is there even food? I don't think mom cooked anything."

He cocked his head. "What, you think I'd let you starve? Never." Logan led her to the dining table, where he took the pasta contained and popped it in the microwave. Logan prepared two places on the table. After heating the food, he opened the contained and placed it at the center of the table. "Voila!"

Despite the haze of throbbing pain, Veronica had to smile. "You got my favorite!" She watched as Logan served some on her plate then put some on his. When he started wolfing down the pasta, she frowned. "You didn't eat while I was asleep?"

Logan swallowed the food, then shook his head. "You were bound to get hungry sooner or later." He saw that it was already midnight. "I didn't want you to eat alone."

Veronica jumped up from her seat and placed a kiss on his cheek. "Oh sorry," she said. "I think that was a wet kiss."

"Oh you don't know how wet you can be," he commented.

Veronica gasped, then threw a very small piece of garlic bread at him. "Logan, that's disgusting!"

"Get your mind out of the gutter, Mars. I was talking about your drooling all over my jacket while you were knocked out."

She flushed. "I did not!"

"It's okay, Veronica," he assured her. "You didn't know what was going on."

"How long was I out for?" she wondered.

Logan calculated mentally, then informed her, "You fell at around three, then you were at the clinic getting your temporary cast until four thirty. Since then you were flying in fantasy land, but you weren't knocked out until we were driving you back at five thirty."

Veronica turned and saw the time. "I was out for a long time." She narrowed her eyes at Logan and joked, because she trusted him completely to not have done anything, "You didn't try some hanky-panky did you?"

"Oh you were all over me!" Logan teased back.

"Must be the drugs then," she answered back.

Logan grinned and watched her eat. While she was in a good mood, he was just going to tell her. "You have a lot of messages," he told her. "Your parents can't come home tonight; Lilly wants you to call her; and," he finished quickly and almost incoherently, "MsLee-and-Hamilton-Cho-know-about-you-and-me-and-you-don't-have-to-worry-because-they're-not-gonna-tell."

She looked up at Logan with a frozen smile while her mind worked to transcribe the information. Her smiled faded. "Oh my God, Logan! I was out for just a few hours and two people know?"

"You're the one who fell off a pyramid. They wouldn't have known if you hadn't fallen," he defended himself.

She narrowed her eyes. "I wouldn't have been at cheerleading practice if you hadn't been so jealous in the first place."

"And I wouldn't have been jealous if you hadn't been getting flowers from Duncan."

"Well thank you for all the flowers you keep giving me at school," she retorted.

Logan's jaw fell. "I thought you didn't want anyone to suspect anything!"

"Well that just won't work anymore now that Hamilton and Ms Lee know."

Logan opened his mouth to speak. Nothing came out. He had no argument for it. Then he started laughing. Veronica looked at him as if he were crazy. Slowly though, she started chuckling. Then she gasped for breath, wincing when she felt her arm getting jarred because of her laughter.

"Hey are you okay?" Logan prompted.

Veronica nodded, wiping at her tears of laughter. She followed as Logan stood up then stepped out of the house. Veronica waited anxiously, because he had only been laughing a few seconds ago. It was improbable that he just walked out on her. Soon enough, he was back with her bag in his arms.

"You were so heavy when I carried you in here. I couldn't carry your bag too."

Veronica accepted the bag gratefully, looking at Logan with something close to adoration. Instead of saying something that would be too sweet for someone like Logan Echolls, she said, "I will kick your ass if you imply I'm fat again." She was trying to hard, after all, to not become too much of anything that Logan would find disagreeable.

"I wouldn't dare," he answered, kissing her on the nose. Logan then opened the bag because she was just going to struggle with the zip using one hand. He took the bottle out and unscrewed the cap. Then he handed her one of the pills. "You're one scary woman."

Veronica accepted the pill with a smile, and kissed him on the lips. "Thank you." After taking the pill, she pulled him with her to the bedroom. She lay down and waited until he lay down behind her. Logan rested his arm over her waist and pulled her close. "We can't be late for class," she reminded him. "Wake me up, okay?"

"Promise."

They woke up the next day ten minutes before first period, glaring at each other in Logan's car as he drove them.

"I'll go in first," she told him when they arrived.

"I'll follow after ten minutes."

Veronica did not get out, expecting something. She then sighed and decided not to bother. He leaned over and pushed her door open. When she was about to slide out, he placed his hand on her thigh. She turned to him and he kissed her on the lips. "Veronica, don't forget to take your pill after," he checked his watch, "three hours and thirty eight minutes."

She smiled and nodded. Veronica took a slip of pink paper from her bag. "One of my last. It's a late pass."

Logan accepted the slip of paper. "I'll check later if you took your meds. Have fun today."

"You too," she said.

He rolled his eyes. "As if that's possible."

tbc


	4. Chapter 4

Part 4

It turned out that they were not late. Classes had been pushed back for thirty minutes to make way for an emergency faculty meeting. It had been announced the day before and Veronica could not believe she had forgotten, injury or not. Logan was throwing her off her priorities but it was hard to mind.

Veronica stuffed her bag inside her locker and took out her books. It was a feat, given that she had only one fully functioning arm. Before she could close her locker, a pale white hand slammed it shut for her. She turned to the grinning girl whose eyebrow was arched at her.

"Lilly, hi," Veronica greeted.

Lilly's eyes fell down to her cast. "Veronica," she groaned. "I thought you already agreed that I'm throwing a pool party! You can't swim with that."

Veronica bit her lower lip and saw Duncan approaching them. He looked down with concern at the injury. He fell to step beside Lilly and took the cast in his hands. Veronica gasped when Duncan lifted her broken arm up. "Ouch. Duncan careful!" she cried out when the throbbing intensified.

"What the hell, DK? Think!" Logan called out. The three looked back towards Logan strolling towards them from the entrance. Veronica could hear him almost growling as he picked up his pace. In surprise, Duncan dropped Veronica's arm. Veronica hissed as the heavy cast fell and she hit the injury on her hip. He searched Veronica's face and recognized the pain in her eyes. He wanted to hit Duncan, but knew he had to calm down because it would be odd for him to beat the crap out of his best friend just because he was clumsy enough to inadvertently hurt the friend of his ex-girlfriend. "You okay?"

"Yeah," she breathed.

"You need to go to the clinic?" he inquired gruffly.

Lilly rolled her eyes and grabbed the books from Veronica's other arm. "Logan, don't be a drama queen. He was only concerned," she pointed out. Lilly dumped the books in her brother's arms. "Carry that, will you? Our first class is in Room 122."

Lilly then proceeded to pull Veronica along with her, whispering and giggling in Veronica's ear. Logan heard some of it. Lilly advised Veronica to work it and get out of a class or two.

"God," Duncan sighed as he maneuvered his arms and the pile of books he now carried, which obviously consisted of his own, Lilly's and now Veronica's books. "Lilly's a bitch," was his complaint.

Logan chuckled. "You're telling me."

Duncan glanced at his best friend. "Oh yeah. Until two months ago you were Lilly's slave, weren't you? Maybe you should carry her books."

Logan raised his eyebrows and held his arms open. "Difference between you and me, Duncan, is I got out of that relationship with your sister. I'm free of having to lug her stuff around."

"Not fair," Duncan mumbled. "I can't break up with Lilly."

Logan laughed. "Hey neither could I. Lilly dumped my ass. Several times."

The two girls walking in front of them heard the comment and looked at Logan and Duncan. Lilly beamed at Logan, flattered. Veronica's eyes on the other hand were searching.

Logan gave her a small, secret smile. He held out his hands at Duncan. "All right," he said. "I don't want people to think you're the servant boy of this little clique. Hand over the books."

"I don't know which ones are Lilly's," Duncan muttered.

Logan grabbed the books on top. "I'll take Veronica's if you don't mind."

Before Duncan could sputter his protest, Logan had flashed his playful smile and glided over in between the girls. He laid his arms on their shoulders while he grasped the books in both hands. "So ladies, having a good gossip fest over here?"

"Logan," Lilly purred, "we were just talking about you." Her hand flew up to stroke his cheek. "I was telling Veronica how much more attractive you've gotten."

"Aha!" With a silly grin and brown eyes glittering with secrets, he turned to Veronica. "And what did you say about that, Mars?"

"That I couldn't really tell," she responded.

"Oh really?"

"Really," Veronica said with a smile.

"And I was telling her that whatever you've been sniffing since we parted ways must be having such a good effect on you," Lilly pointed out. "So really, I did you a favor."

Veronica giggled. Logan shook his head. "First of all, parted ways is a euphemism. You left me stranded and drunk in Dog Beach after telling me you were seeing someone else." Veronica flushed at the memory, because it was the same night that Logan was going to break it off with Lilly as well, with reasons not that different from Lilly's.

"How do you figure you did Logan a favor, Lil?" Veronica chirped from Logan's other side. She heard Duncan gasping behind them and she turned and extended her hand so that Duncan would fall beside them in their line.

"Well," Lilly said, as if disbelieving that they had not reached the same conclusion that she had, "if I hadn't, you wouldn't have turned into whatever you've turned into. Hotter."

"Lilly!" Veronica exclaimed in mock protest. "There's probably much more to Logan Echolls than being hot."

Lilly stopped walking and held out her hands for her books. "I'll let you find out what else changed, but that's the most obvious thing to me." She accepted the books that Duncan handed to her. "Thank you very much. Come on, Veronica. Let's go before we're late. You sure you don't want to pretend that you're in pain and in need of your best friend to take you to the clinic?"

Duncan frowned when Veronica did not answer at once. He watched Veronica pick her books from Logan's pile.

"You couldn't leave all my books at the top, could you?"

Duncan shook his head when he realized the new slight of hand that Logan had perfected. His and Veronica's books were alternated in the pile, prolonging his interaction with Veronica. Duncan regretted allowing Logan to take Veronica's books instead of Lilly's.

Logan leaned down and whispered something into Veronica's ear. Veronica glanced at Duncan and then nodded. When Logan asked her something Duncan could not hear, she opened her bag and showed him something inside. Logan nodded, satisfied.

Veronica followed Lilly into the classroom. Quickly, Duncan looked at his sister to check if she had witnessed the odd interaction. Lilly was, however, basking in the attention of the transfer student from New York whom Duncan had met in the meet and greet with the young achievers session the night before.

"What was that about?" Duncan asked Logan.

Logan looked at Duncan as if he had grown two heads. "What was what about?"

"What were you looking for in Veronica's bag?"

Logan smirked. "I was missing a box of condoms from my locker and I told her I'd suspect her if she doesn't prove it's not stuffed inside her bag."

Duncan chuckled at the absurdity of Logan's remark. Logan Echolls would never talk like that to Veronica and Veronica Mars, as pure and innocent as she was, would never be suspected of any misdemeanor. He hit Logan at the back of his head. "You should've just said it's none of my business."

"Then it's none of your business," Logan parried back. Logan made a show of flicking his fingertips at Duncan, then turned his back on him and made his way down the corridor towards their own first period.

"Fine, Logan!" Duncan yelled at his best friend, smirking. "Be like that." He sent one last glance to Veronica who was sitting in her chair with her nose buried in today's lesson.

She must have felt him watching her, because she looked up with a bright smile on her face. It faded a little when she recognized Duncan waving at her. She raised her hand with a small wave.

Lilly glanced at the direction where Veronica was looking. When she saw her brother, her eyes sparkled and teased Veronica.

With a giant grin on his face, Duncan caught up with Logan. "Just a few more days, my friend," he said as he patted Logan on the back.

"Before you speak," Logan warned, "make sure it's going to be interesting enough for me to hear. What's it about?"

The two of them entered the classroom. Logan dropped into his desk and waited for Duncan to lean over from his own. "It's about my love life, and the culmination of all my efforts."

That caught Logan's attention. The teacher stood from her desk and told everyone to take out their homework. "What is it?" Logan whispered back.

With an excited grin, Duncan shared, "I think Veronica's going to tell me very soon that she's going to go to the dance with me. I can feel it in my bones!"

"Mr Echolls, Mr Kane," the teacher called them to get their attention. "Since you seem to have plenty of thoughts about this subject, why don't you come up here and tell the class all about Edgar Allan Poe?"

When classes let out for lunch, Veronica and Lilly made their way through the corridors until they noticed the crowd that had gathered. They were close to Logan's locker, which they passed on their way to the quad.

"Lilly, let's go the other way."

"Veronica, that way is too inconvenient. Come on." She held out her hand. "Grab hold and don't let go. We're going to squeeze our way through."

They should not have worried. The moment the people around them realized that it was Lilly Kane and Veronica Mars, they made way for the two. Lilly followed the space until they found themselves in the clearing at the front of the crowd.

Veronica looked up and gasped at what he saw. Logan, his arms folded across his chest, glowered at the magazine clippings posted on his locker and the ones surrounding it. Beside him were a frustrated Duncan and a pissed off Dick.

i_SHOWBIZ CAMELOT COMES CRASHING DOWN _

_NEPTUNE SHERIFF STUMBLES INTO AARON ECHOLLS MOTEL ROOM OF ADULTERY_

_ECHOLLS FAIRY TALE ENDS_

_AARON ECHOLLS CHEATING ON LYNN LESTER_/i

Dick was the first to see her and Lilly. He snarled at her. "I told you to cut her off," Dick spat out. "This is her father's fault. These trailer trash can't leave well enough alone."

Veronica flinched at the hurtful words thrown at her. Duncan's hands fisted at the words. He rumbled, "Don't, Dick."

Logan straightened and turned around. He saw Veronica, whose eyes were swimming with tears. Lilly glared at Dick.

"Why not, DK?" Dick asked. "It's true. Her father caused all this. The Echolls were an upstanding family until the sheriff blew everything out of the water. She was never part of this group. Just because you want to get under her skirt and Lilly adopted her like an abandoned mongrel bitch, that doesn't mean she belongs."

Veronica hardened herself against the words. She met Logan's furious gaze and knew he was about to erupt then. Furtively, she shook her head at him. Logan snarled but kept silent.

Dick walked over to Veronica. He threw his hand behind him in a gesture for her to witness what she had done. "Look at this! Your daddy did all this." Dick assessed her from head to foot. To Duncan, he said, "Truth to tell, DK, I don't know why you're prolonging the agony. Just fuck her and get it over with. You're working too hard. I bet she'd spread her legs for you any day as long as you bring your credit card along."

Since Logan was closer to Dick, Duncan waited a heartbeat before flying at Dick and grabbing him by his shirt, then slamming the blonde boy against the lockers. Lilly stepped in front of Veronica. She glared at Logan while Duncan held Dick immobile.

"Are you just going to stand there?" Lilly drawled at Logan. She glowered at him. "And here I thought you've become more mature. You can't even protect your own friends?"

Logan swallowed heavily, the vein in his forehead throbbing. Veronica recognized the coiled tension in his body. She placed her hand on Lilly's arm.

"You want me to do what I've been wanting to do, Lilly?" Logan kept his eyes turned to Lilly, because he knew Veronica did not want him involved in fights anymore. It scared her, and he knew if he was going to ever have a chance with her father he had to get his record clean. Logan stalked over to Duncan and Dick. He pulled Dick out of Duncan's grip and smiled tightly, patting his shirt to get the creases out. To Dick he said, "I'd advise you to walk away now while you still can, Dick. And always look behind you because you won't be safe from now on." His voice dropping a notch, he whispered, "Nobody messes with Veronica Mars."

Dick stumbled away. Duncan yelled at Logan. "That was it?" he demanded. "God, Logan, I don't know you anymore. We're over."

The crowd, which had been about to disperse when Dick left, stuck around to watch the most fabulous people in their school have at it.

Finally, Logan gazed at Veronica, who was still pale and trembling. He met her eyes and released his breath when he saw the small smile and the pride that swam inside her tears. It took a lot out of him to hold back, and he was learning.

With a smirk, he turned to Duncan. "What, you're breaking up with me?"

"What I know is I won't stand idly by," Duncan said. He turned to Lilly and Veronica, then jerked his head to the quad. "Come on." Duncan grabbed Veronica's upper arm, right above the cast.

She flinched. Logan looked down and saw the tight grip Duncan had on her. "Fuck, Duncan, let go!" Logan slammed his palm into Duncan's chest. He saw the mark of Duncan's hand on the skin.

"What the hell is going on?" Duncan cried in frustration.

Lilly snorted. "Donut, are you dumb? You just grabbed Veronica's broken arm." Turning to her best friend, she asked, "Are you okay?" Before Veronica could answer, Lilly saw her brother's hands fist then relax over and over. She noticed the tinge of red and blue that covered Duncan's neck. She pulled her brother to her side. "Listen, Logan, I need to take Duncan home. Can you stay with Veronica and make sure Dickhead doesn't come anywhere near her?"

Logan and Veronica watched curiously as Lilly Kane led her trembling brother out of the school and towards the parking lot. He turned to the crowd and drawled lazily, "Okay kids, nothing to see here. Shoo!"

As the students walked away whispering and muttering about the drama of the days of the monarchy's lives, Logan looked down at his watch. Left alone, he told her, "Secret's over, Veronica. I'm not going to let anyone treat you like that anymore. You can't make me stay quiet after this."

She smiled and nodded. Veronica understood that right after he saw the agonized self-control Logan exercised on her behalf. "Thank you, Logan," she said, not needing to name the exact thing he had done because they both understood.

"I won't go crazy," he promised. "I still want your dad to think I'm not a poor candidate. At the same time, I'm not going to let Dick or anyone else think they can say whatever they want to say about you."

"Understood," she said.

Logan pointed at his watch. "Now that that's out of the way, Ms Mars, it's time to take your medicine."

She glanced left and right, then told him, "Walk me to my locker?"

"I don't really have a choice, do I? The princess of Neptune commands that I stick with you."

"Her handmaiden."

He shook his head. "I don't think so." He didn't give a damn about who would see. Logan threw his arm around her shoulders and kissed her temple. If Dick Casablancas thought he was going to hurt Veronica, if Duncan Kane thought flowers can win her over, if Lilly thought after Veronica had changed Logan for the better she could get the improved version of her ex, then they all had to think again. "How does queen sound?"

tbc


	5. Chapter 5

Part 5

There was very little of lunch period left by the time Veronica had taken her painkillers and Logan stopped scrutinizing the label of the medicine bottle and the suspicious dent on the cap that Veronica confessed resulted from her trying to pry open the too tightly sealed container with one hand and a bottle opener. After closing the locker door, Logan propelled her towards one of the empty classrooms.

Veronica's cheeks were flushed as she stepped inside. In her mind, the possibility of someone seeing them was not far. She would have mentioned it had Logan not already set her expectations that he was not going to agree to secrecy anymore. When he sat down, Veronica noted the way his jaw was still tense and his hands were still fisted at his sides.

"Are you still bothered by those clippings?" she asked tentatively. Had it been her, they would have definitely bothered her.

"It bothers the hell out of me that I couldn't kick the shit out of Dick," he pointed out.

"Stop thinking about me for a second and tell me what really bothers you, Logan," Veronica told him. "That's the only way to de-stress."

Logan looks at her with half-hooded eyes. She had the same pleading look that she had when she clutched his shirt on the beach the night he got pissing drunk after Lilly had dumped him. He always got uncomfortable when Veronica got that look. It was as if he could not keep anything secret from her. He hated that look. It made him lose all power. That look chopped off his balls. She had used it once and he fell for it completely.

i_Veronica looked around and then glowered at Logan, who stumbled on the sand. He fell to his knees and cursed the mound of sand that caused him to fall. She knelt down on then commanded him, "Get up."_

_He pushed her away, or rather tried to. Alcohol made you lose muscle power. "Go away. You're not my mother," he mumbled._

_Veronica gasped, then bit her lip. She blinked away the tears that had gathered. "Get up, Logan. I can't believe you got drunk."_

"_You don't know what happened," he retorted._

"_I know Lilly broke up with you," Veronica told him, feeling betrayed._

"_How you know?" Logan demanded. "What little snitch came running off at the mouth?"_

"_Duncan told me when he passed by my house and asked me to go out with him," Veronica informed Logan, whose head was now lolling sideways. "And you know what? Maybe I should've gone with him instead of waiting for you get here drunk just because the girl you were going to break up with broke up with you first!"_

"_You wanna leave?" Logan repeated. "Then go and date Duncan Kane. He's a better choice than me anyway."_

_Veronica swallowed back her tears and stared at him lying down on the sand face up. She waited several heartbeats. When he didn't move, she stood up. "Okay." Veronica started to walk away. _

_She was halfway down the beach when she stumbled at the weight of someone's body propelling onto her back. Then, tight arms surrounded her and she could not move. "Logan," she protested when she smelled the alcohol on his breath, "get off me, okay?"_

"_I'm sorry," he murmured against her neck._

"_That's not good enough," she answered. "You can't make me an emotional punching bag and you can't always go half-assed drunk whenever Lilly steps all over you. I'm not going to mop you all up. I've got a better chance of being treated better if I just go out with Duncan."_

_The arms around her tightened. "Do you mean that?" he asked sadly._

_Veronica struggled out of the embrace and turned around to glare down at him. "You're really stupid," she sniffled._

"_I know," he admitted. "And Duncan's got a 4.0 GPA."_

"_Do you know when I found out what a great grade he has?" Veronica asked rhetorically. Logan shrugged. "I've known since forever, Logan. And I know your GPA. I don't care about that. Why do you think I kissed you?"_

"_Because I'm hotter than he is?" he finished lamely._

_Veronica closed her hands over his and pulled him down to sit on the sand. "Do you know how hard it was for me to know I liked a boy my best friend liked? She's like a sister to me, Logan. But I dated you. That's how much I like you. Don't you ever talk about Duncan being a better choice because you're not going to convince me."_

"_Why were you so mad tonight?"_

"_You promised me you'd stop drinking so much."_

"_And you were just going to be mad? Jesus, Veronica, even people in programs get some slack now and then. I'm sorry I broke, okay?"_

_Veronica shook her head. "It's not because you drank, Logan."_

"_Then why—"_

"_It's because you drank after Lilly dumped you. You were doing so well." She raised shining eyes to his, pleading him to tell her the truth. "Does Lilly affect you that much still… even when you know I'm here for you… does she still have that much power over you that you can break your promise to me?"_

_Logan's eyebrows furrowed. He looked down at her fingers grasping his shirt and saw that her knuckles had turned white. He met her gaze. "No!" he said earnestly. "God, no! You think—"_

_She nodded. "You're still in love with Lilly. You're always gonna be. I don't blame you. Lilly's like this… shining, vibrant, exciting, beautiful—"_

_His hand closed around her nape and he pulled her up for a kiss. Veronica squealed before surrendering herself to the kiss. Her fingers loosened on his shirt and she wrapped her arms around his neck. When they parted, Logan smiled and rested his forehead on hers. "That shut you up."_

"_That wasn't fair," she breathed._

"_You were talking nonsense," he reminded her._

_Veronica pulled away and looked up at him. "Why did you get drunk?"_

"_I got dumped by Lilly Kane," he said. She nodded. "It's not what you think, Veronica. I'm not in love with Lilly. This isn't my way of dealing with a broken heart, okay? It's much more than that."_

"_Okay."_

"_I promised you I'd break up with her and we can come out. But I had to get dumped and everyone's gonna make you the rebound girl. God, Veronica, you're so much more than that. You know Lilly. She's gonna make you the rebound girl."_

"_Lilly's not like that, Logan," Veronica protested._

"_Lie to yourself, will you?" Logan snapped. "You know Lilly Kane, Veronica. Best friend or not, she's going to be the star. It's either you're the poor pathetic rebound girl of her leftovers or you're the manipulative bitch pretending to be her friend all the while plotting to steal her boyfriend. Either way, we lose and Lilly's the high school sweetheart."He stopped. "Wait a minute. Did you say okay earlier?"_

"_I did."_

"_Just like that?"_

_She took her hand in his and squeezed. "All I know is that it's okay. But you have to promise me something."_

"_Anything," he vowed._

"_Don't," she said quickly. "Don't agree until you know what it's about. That way I know you understand what you're going to have to promise me." He nodded. "No more drinking. No more suspensions, Logan. My dad's so sold to the prospect of Duncan with his perfect grades and clean as a whistle school records. I need him to warm up to you and he's not gonna do it while he's hauling your ass around the cop cars."_

_Logan blinked away the alcohol clouding his brain. "Be a good boy?" he smirked._

"_Can you manage that?"_

_And he couldn't deny that look anything. "I'll certainly try."/i_

He'd come a long way since the night she cajoled that promise out of him. Logan released a heavy breath and said, "When the rumors affect my mom, it bothers the hell out of me. She's done nothing wrong and she's getting hammered by all this." Logan combed his fingers through his hair. "My mom's too emotional to deal with this."

Veronica nodded in understanding and stepped closer to him, wrapping her uninjured arm around his waist. He rested his chin on top of her head. "I'm so sorry," she breathed. "I know there wouldn't have been any rumors or news articles if it hadn't been for my dad."

He shook his head, breathing in the smell of strawberries from her hair. "You know we can't be affected by it," he advised. "Let the grownups deal with their own hell. From now on we don't care about anything unless they directly affect us, alright? I'll take care of anyone who tries to bully you because of our parents."

"No you won't." She pulled away gently and looked up at him. "I can't always be waiting around for you or Duncan to defend me. I'm gonna do it myself."

"You're such a little thing."

She arched an eyebrow at him. "Such a little thing?" she repeated. "Am I so helpless when I successfully got the two best guys in this school wrapped around my little finger?"

Logan chuckled. "I'm sure they don't all have the hots for you. Listen," he continued, "this is what I'll do. You, my dear, are going to attend Logan's School of Hard Knocks. I'm gonna teach you to be tough. By the time I'm through with you, you'll be kicking ass."

Veronica grinned. She patted the teacher's desk and Logan helped her sit up on it.

"Lesson one. Learn to snoop." Logan took a notebook and a pen and placed the notebook on her lap. He handed her the pen. "Write this down. Dick Casablancas. Took a milk bottle to bed with him until fourth grade. Peed on the bed until sixth grade. His first experience with a girl, he came in his pants." Veronica looked up wide-eyed at Logan. "Write it down, Ronnie. I'm giving you precious wisdom you can use to blackmail anyone who ever tries to bully you around. "John Enbom. Filches money from his rich grandmother's purse so he can buy ecstasy pills for each rave party."

Logan continued listing down all the trash he knew of all the 09ers. He wondered if he was breaking some sort of law doing it, but as Veronica scribbled away filing the information for later use, he decided it was all worth it if people would stop putting her down. Finally, after about eight pages of filth, Veronica tossed the pen down and complained, "My arm is going to fall off."

Logan smiled at the sight of Veronica's lower lip thrust out. He grinned and walked over to her, standing between her legs and brushing the hair away from her face. "You look gorgeous."

Veronica smiled and pulled him to her. When their lips met for a kiss, the door opened.

"What are you two doing here?"

Veronica and Logan sprung apart and they saw Hamilton Cho frowning at them from the doorway. Veronica remembered that he was hall monitor. She glanced at the clock on the wall and saw that lunch period was over. Her eyes narrowed. It was now or never. She had to show her boyfriend she had something to work with.

"I'm going to tell Clemmons that you two are in here."

"Hamilton," Veronica replied in a sweet voice, "please don't do that. I wouldn't want to have the same record that you and Marie Winters have. It would be a shame for everyone to know that you were getting it on with the admin assistant who had a copy of all the exam papers the same term you got perfect scores on all the subject tests."

Hamilton glared at Veronica. "You can't prove she gave me anything!"

"Whether I prove it or not, it won't matter. If the school board suspect you of cheating, it's all over for you and any scholarship grant you want, you know."

The Asian boy shook his head and turned away. "Just hurry up and get to class. I'm not giving you a tardy slip."

The door closed behind him and Veronica turned in openmouthed surprise to Logan. Then, she squealed in delight. Logan chuckled. "I'm impressed," he told her. "You're one tough chick!"

"I am, aren't I? You'd better be scared of me. If you cheat on me, your ass is grass!"

Logan grinned. "Where'd you get the info? I only gave you 09er stuff."

She smiled. "I have my own sources. I'm not totally useless, you know."

tbc


End file.
